Rescue Teams Don't Expect to Find Survivors in Papua New Guinea Landslide

This handout photo taken and received on May 29, 2024 courtesy of Nickson Pakea, president of Porgera Chamber of Commerce and Industry, shows locals digging at the site of a landslide at Yambali village in the region of Maip Mulitaka, in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province. (Photo by NICKSON PAKEA / PRESIDENT OF PORGERA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY / AFP)
This handout photo taken and received on May 29, 2024 courtesy of Nickson Pakea, president of Porgera Chamber of Commerce and Industry, shows locals digging at the site of a landslide at Yambali village in the region of Maip Mulitaka, in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province. (Photo by NICKSON PAKEA / PRESIDENT OF PORGERA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY / AFP)
TT

Rescue Teams Don't Expect to Find Survivors in Papua New Guinea Landslide

This handout photo taken and received on May 29, 2024 courtesy of Nickson Pakea, president of Porgera Chamber of Commerce and Industry, shows locals digging at the site of a landslide at Yambali village in the region of Maip Mulitaka, in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province. (Photo by NICKSON PAKEA / PRESIDENT OF PORGERA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY / AFP)
This handout photo taken and received on May 29, 2024 courtesy of Nickson Pakea, president of Porgera Chamber of Commerce and Industry, shows locals digging at the site of a landslide at Yambali village in the region of Maip Mulitaka, in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province. (Photo by NICKSON PAKEA / PRESIDENT OF PORGERA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY / AFP)

Papua New Guinea ruled out finding survivors under the rubble of a massive landslide on Thursday, with the exact number of dead under almost two stories of debris and mud still unknown but ranging from hundreds to thousands.
Heavy equipment and aid have been slow to arrive because of the treacherous mountain terrain, a damaged bridge on the main road, and tribal unrest in the area, Reuters reported.
"No bodies are expected to be alive under the debris at this point, so it's a full recovery operation to recover any human remains," Enga province disaster committee chairperson Sandis Tsaka told Reuters.
Officials are still trying to pinpoint how many people are buried under parts of a mountain which collapsed onto the Yambali village in the Enga region around 3 a.m. last Friday.
Without a current census – the last credible one was done in 2000 – officials are relying on incomplete voter records and checks with local leaders to reach an estimate on total deaths.
More than 2,000 people may have been buried alive, according to the PNG government. A UN estimate put the death toll at around 670, while a local businessman and former official told Reuters it was closer to 160.
Tsaka said the government was still unsure about the death toll though it would be a "significant number."
"It could be anywhere from hundreds to 2,000. I wouldn't totally rule 2,000 out because of the uncertainty about how many people were (there) at the time but I can't give you a definitive answer till we complete the social mapping," he said.
Of the six bodies recovered so far, two lived outside the disaster area, Tsaka said, reinforcing officials' view that there was lots of movement between communities.
Dozens of soldiers, engineers, geology experts and public health officials have reached the site, Tsaka said. Rescue teams are planning to use heavy machinery from Thursday, after unstable ground delayed its use earlier.
Thousands of residents are on alert for potential evacuation in case the landslide shifts further downhill.



Israel Says No Foreign Courts Have Warrants Issued against Reservists

 Israeli military vehicles operate on a base near the border to Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from southern Israel, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
Israeli military vehicles operate on a base near the border to Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from southern Israel, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
TT

Israel Says No Foreign Courts Have Warrants Issued against Reservists

 Israeli military vehicles operate on a base near the border to Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from southern Israel, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
Israeli military vehicles operate on a base near the border to Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from southern Israel, January 7, 2025. (Reuters)

Israel said on Tuesday pressure groups were pushing foreign courts to take action against Israelis over alleged war crimes in Gaza but described the actions as "propaganda activity" and said no warrants had been issued.

The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as a Hamas leader, Ibrahim Al-Masri, over alleged war crimes in Gaza.

The warrants sparked outrage in Israel but also drew fears that similar warrants could be issued against Israelis who served in the military in Gaza.

On Sunday, an Israeli reservist on holiday in Brazil left the country after a Brazilian federal judge in Salvador ordered police to open an investigation into allegations that he had committed war crimes while serving with the military in Gaza.

The Hind Rajab Foundation, the pro-Palestinian group which brought the action, says on its website it "focuses on offensive legal action against perpetrators, accomplices and inciters of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Palestine."

The Belgium-based group, named after a Palestinian girl killed in Gaza last year, also said it had filed evidence of alleged war crimes with the ICC against 1,000 Israelis, including video and audio reports, forensic reports and other documentation. The ICC confirmed it had received a filing and said it would "analyze the materials submitted, as appropriate".

Israel's foreign ministry offered assistance to the reservist singled out by the action but officials said the issue was not widespread.

"This is a phenomenon of very limited scope in numbers," foreign ministry director general Eden Bar Tal told reporters in Jerusalem, saying there had been no more than 10-12 cases since the beginning of Israel's campaign in Gaza 15 months ago.

"There was no warrant issued in any of these cases. So it was, I would say, a relatively strong PR activity but with very low, very, very low - zero - in judicial results," he said.

"We believe it's a lot of propaganda activity in general and it's sponsored by entities, a very low number of entities, that have direct connections to terrorist organizations," he said.

Hind Rajab Foundation founder, Dyab Abou Jahjah, posts messages on the social media platform X promising to file legal action against Israeli soldiers and asking for help identifying them. He has also posted messages in support of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement, designated as a terrorist organization by many Western countries.

The group did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The case in Brazil attracted wide attention in Israel, underscoring fears that individuals beyond the government and military leadership could be drawn into the war crimes issue, particularly through social media posts.

The Israeli military has warned reservists that they could face arrest abroad over alleged war crimes in Gaza, according to documents published by Israeli media. The left-wing Haaretz newspaper said complaints against IDF soldiers have been filed in South Africa, Belgium and France as well as Brazil.

However, Rubens Becak, a law professor at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil, said it was not always straightforward for third countries to respond to suits of this kind.

"Without specific legislation, it becomes very difficult for institutions such as the Federal Police to act in cases like this," he said.